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HomeMy WebLinkAbout2022-11-10 Agenda Review NEW HANOVER COUNTY BOARD OF COMMISSIONERS BOOK 35 AGENDA REVIEW, NOVEMBER 10, 2022 PAGE 575 ASSEMBLY The New Hanover County Board of Commissioners met for Agenda Review on November 10, 2022, at 4:00 p.m. in the Harrell Conference Room at the New Hanover County Government Center, 230 Government Center Drive, Wilmington, North Carolina. Members present: Vice-Chair Deb Hays; Commissioner Bill Rivenbark; and Commissioner Rob Zapple. Members absent: Chair Julia Olson-Boseman; Commissioner Jonathan Barfield, Jr. Staff present: County Manager Chris Coudriet; Deputy County Attorney Kemp Burpeau; and Clerk to the Board Kymberleigh G. Crowell. Vice-Chair Hays called the Agenda Review meeting to order and announced that the purpose of the meeting is to review and discuss the agenda items for the November 14, 2022 Regular Meeting with discussions as noted: Consent Agenda Item #2: First Reading: Approval of Solid Waste Franchise for Carolina Waste & Recycling LLC: In response to Board questions regarding services and competition, Environmental Management Director Joe Suleyman explained that prior to his time with the County, there was an attempt to divide the unincorporated County into zones and bid out for trash removal services. By doing so, the County was perceived as anti-competitive. County Manager Coudriet stated that the County has visited the issue twice in the last 20 years. Discussion ensued regarding the small haulers and start-up companies. Consent Agenda Item #3: Approval of an Interlocal Agreement with Cape Fear Community College: In response to Board questions regarding the agreement, County Manager Coudriet confirmed that the purchase of the building is contingent on the due diligence period to include the appraisal and the environmental assessment reports. The closing will likely be in mid-January due to the environmental assessment. County Manager Coudriet confirmed that Local Government Commission (LGC) approval is only needed to issue debt, not to purchase the property. As far as issuing the debt, the LGC should approve the issuance of the debt as it is a conventional traditional financing model. Again, the County does not need permission from the LGC to purchase the property and the County has followed the law when it comes to acquiring the property. Consent Agenda Item #6: Adoption of a Resolution for Award of Bid for the Purchase of Cover Soil for the Landfill to 421 Sand, Inc.: In response to Board questions regarding the possibility of a biodegradable mesh cover and the possibility of using vegetative debris from Hurricane Florence, Mr. Suleyman stated that staff has considered it. The temporary covers currently in place are part of the five year capital improvement plan (CIP) and there is a temporary cover in place now that is just under five acres that is holding up well. The County has gone through a bit of the leftover vegetative debris, but regulations state that the County is only allowed to use 70% soil and 30% vegetative mix. That leaves the County short and forces it to purchase and import soil from off-site because the County has exhausted all the on-site soil without taking from areas where future cells need to be constructed. He further stated that Christmas trees can also be utilized and the County partners with The Home Depot for collection purposes. However, the trees are first made available for offshore reef projects. Once those trees are delivered to the landfill, the County pays to add the ground up trees to the mixture. Consent Agenda Item #7: Adoption of a Resolution to Dispose of Surplus Property According to Procedures Outlined in North Carolina General Statute Chapter 160A-Article 12: Commissioner Zapple stated he wanted to make the media and public aware that the opportunity comes up each year to acquire surplus items and are made available to nonprofits prior to being sold at auction to the public. Regular Item #11: Presentation of Service Awards and Introduction of New Employees. It was noted that this item was removed from the agenda and will be on the January 23, 2023 agenda. Regular Item #13: Consideration of Project Grace Follow-Up Items: Budget Amendment to Acquire Design Plans and Resolution Regarding Intentions for the Existing Museum Building. County Manager Coudriet provided an update on Project Grace and the Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) requirement to purchase the plans from Zimmer Development if the project did not move forward. Zimmer Development has withdrawn from the project because they do not do projects where there is a fee for development, but they have left the County in good standing with the plans that capture an outstanding vision and design for Project Grace, which is supported by museum and library staff. County staff has been in conversations with Cape Fear Commercial who expressed interest in moving the project forward. Staff hopes to be able to provide the Board additional options during the first quarter of 2023. The matter does not need to be fast tracked as the cost of money and goods is going up, but should the matter be approved on Monday, the County will own the plans and continue to discuss the project with Cape Fear Commercial. In response to Board questions, County Manager Coudriet stated that the MOU authorized up to $2.5 million and Zimmer Development is requesting $2.6 million. However, he does not believe that staff can recommend more than what was agreed to. Unless the Board directs otherwise, there will not be another Request for Proposal (RFP) process as the County is in discussions with a trusted, reasonable partner who is doing a similar project for the County. A brief discussion ensued regarding the previous RFP process for Project Grace and the complexity of the project. County Manager Coudriet also addressed the concern about the existing Cape Fear Museum. He noted that also included in the agenda item is a resolution confirming the Board’s intent that the existing Cape Fear Museum NEW HANOVER COUNTY BOARD OF COMMISSIONERS BOOK 35 AGENDA REVIEW, NOVEMBER 10, 2022 PAGE 576 will remain part of the museum’s inventory. There was never a plan or strategy to eliminate the existing museum or the park, which will also remain. Regular Item #15: The Cape Fear Homeless Continuum of Care Update. A brief discussion ensued regarding the partners working together on solutions for the downtown homeless population. The Commissioners requested that federal funding options be included in Monday’s presentation. Discussion was also held about the desire for the County to continue being the lead agency so that any funding can flow through the County. Regular Item #18: Consideration of Application for Funding through the Federal Institute of Museum and Library Service’s (IMLS) Museum for America 2023 Funding Opportunity for the Development, Fabrication, and Installation of a New Late 19th Century Exhibition Area as Part of the Cape Fear Stories Exhibition Renewal Which Focuses on the Events of 1898. In response to Board questions, Museum Director Wayne LaBar stated that the local match is a soft match that allows already budgeted salaries to be considered as part of the County’s required match. Regular Item #20: Text Amendment Request (TA22-03B) - Request by New Hanover County Planning and Land Use to amend the Unified Development Ordinance to revise tree-related standards for properties along the Hwy 421 corridor. In response to Board questions, Planning and Land Use Director Rebekah Roth reported that staff was able to identify some areas of agreement between multiple stakeholders. Her presentation on Monday will cover the changes which staff believes are better for the development community and preserves as many trees as possible in the subject area. Connie Parker, speaking on behalf of Alliance for Cape Fear Trees Board of Directors, thanked Ms. Roth and Cameron Moore, Executive Director of the Wilmington Cape Fear Home Builders Association (WCFHBA), for their work to come to an agreement on the amendment. Her group may propose small changes in the future, but they are happy with the progress. Cameron Moore of WCFHBA thanked Ms. Roth for facilitating meetings on the proposed update. He stated that he will continue to work with Ms. Parker on future updates. Regular Item #23: Committee Appointments. In response to Board questions regarding the number of vacancies on the Board of Adjustment, Clerk Crowell stated that the Board is being requested to appoint four people, two in the Regular category and two in the Alternate category. ADJOURNMENT There being no further business, Vice-Chair Hays adjourned the meeting at 4:39 p.m. Respectfully submitted, Kymberleigh G. Crowell Clerk to the Board Please note that the above minutes are not a verbatim record of the New Hanover County Board of Commissioners meeting. The entire proceedings are available online at www.nhcgov.com.